Syringe tissue sieve

Abstract

A syringe tissue sieve for producing viable, single cell suspensions includes a syringe barrel having a lumen between a proximal end and a distal end thereof, a wire mesh screen disposed within the lumen of the syringe barrel, the wire mesh screen being oriented perpendicular to the axial direction of the lumen, and a plunger moveable within the lumen of the syringe barrel. In an alternative embodiment, the wire mesh screen is located in a collar assembly which can be loaded into off-the-shelf syringes.

What is claimed is:  
     
         1 . A syringe tissue sieve for producing viable, single cell suspensions comprising: 
 a syringe barrel having a lumen between a proximal end and a distal end thereof;    a wire mesh screen disposed within the lumen of the syringe barrel, the wire mesh screen oriented perpendicular to the axial direction of the lumen; and    a plunger moveable within the lumen of the syringe barrel.    
     
     
         2 . The syringe plunger of  claim 1 , wherein the wire mesh screen is between about 30 and about 120 mesh.  
     
     
         3 . The syringe plunger of  claim 1 , wherein the wire mesh screen is removable from the syringe barrel.  
     
     
         4 . A syringe tissue sieve for producing viable, single cell suspensions comprising: 
 a syringe barrel having a lumen between a proximal end and a distal end thereof;    a collar assembly containing a wire mesh screen, the collar assembly disposed within the lumen of the syringe barrel such that the wire mesh screen is oriented perpendicular to the axial direction of the lumen; and    a plunger moveable within the lumen of the syringe barrel.    
     
     
         5 . The syringe tissue sieve of  claim 4 , the collar assembly comprising a collar having a seat and a locking ring.  
     
     
         6 . The syringe tissue sieve of  claim 4 , wherein the collar assembly is removable from the syringe barrel.  
     
     
         7 . A method of producing a viable, single cell suspension from a tissue sample comprising the steps of: 
 providing a syringe tissue sieve comprising a syringe barrel having a lumen between a proximal end and a distal end thereof, a wire mesh screen disposed within the lumen of the syringe barrel, the wire mesh screen being disposed perpendicular to the axial direction of the lumen, and a plunger moveable within the lumen of the syringe barrel;    loading the syringe tissue sieve with a tissue sample;    inserting the plunger into the syringe barrel; and    repeatedly moving the plunger back and forth inside the syringe barrel.    
     
     
         8 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising the step of exposing the tissue sample to a digestive enzyme.  
     
     
         9 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising the step of loading the wire mesh screen into the syringe barrel lumen, said step occurring prior to the step of loading a tissue sample into the syringe tissue sieve.  
     
     
         10 . The method of  claim 7 , further comprising the step of removing the wire mesh screen from the syringe barrel lumen, said step occurring after the step of repeatedly moving the plunger back and forth inside the syringe barrel.